Fake 'grenades' prompt Canada Post plant evacuation

The Canada Post building at Georgia and Hamilton streets was evacuated on Monday afternoon. (CBC)

Canada Post's mail processing plant in Vancouver was evacuated on Monday afternoon after staff found what turned out to be fake grenades inside a package.

Police said a bomb technician assessed the package and its contents at the Canada Post building, located at Georgia and Hamilton streets, and determined the grenades were novelty items.

An employee with the Canada Border and Services Agency was performing an X-ray scan of the package, received at around 4:15 p.m. Monday, when the novelty grenades were discovered.

Vancouver police spokesman Brian Montague said the package was not linked to the events at the Boston Marathon, where two bombs exploded near the finish line on Monday, killing three people and injuring more than 100.